For the first time in a long time, music has been heard on the abandoned Scottish island of Stroma.

Scottish band Neon Waltz recently visited the island to shoot publicity shots for their new album - and ended up incorporating some Stroma history into their sound after finding a dusty harmonium organ in the old schoolhouse.

Barely, if ever, touched by a musician since the last children and teachers left, keyboard player Liam Whittles sat down at the keys - and the notes slowly eased out.

With the help of lead singer, Jordan Shearer and guitarist Calvin Wilson, the first song then emerged from the harmonium in probably more than half a century.

“What happened when Liam hit the keys of the harmonium took our breath away and the impromptu performance that followed was unforgettable,” said Ronan Park, photographer and video director, Ronan Park.

It’s population stood at a peak of 375 in 1901 but by the early 1960s, just 12 people remained with work and easier living conditions pulling the population away.

Neon Waltz pictured on Stroma which was last inhabited in the early 1960s. PIC: Ronan Park.

Most of the settlement still stands, albeit in various states of ruin. Cottages, a church and a red phone box can still be found - as well as the schoolhouse.

Drummer Darren Coghill, from John O’ Groats, said: “The view from my kitchen window of the Orkney Isles is blocked only by Stroma.

“There’s nothing other than a mile of water between me and the rock. I look at it every day, but the maddest thing is that I’d never been.

“Finally getting the opportunity to go I didn’t know if it could fulfil what my imagination was suggesting.

“We took an acoustic guitar and a little Casio battery operated keyboard with us hoping to make some recordings on the island…possibly the first ever recordings.

“We had no idea that we’d find this organ and that it’d work. Sometimes it just all adds up: the song, the sound, the surroundings, the people and the history. I see the island in a totally different way - there’s something really magical about it for me now.”